The Reserve Regiments of Cavalry

Organisation

Seventeen reserve regiments were formed when the army mobilised in August 1914. Most of them had two or more of the active cavalry regiments affiliated to them and the intention was for the reserve to supply drafts to the affiliated regiments. In June 1915 the 3rd Line regiments of the Yeomanry (the training units of the cavalry of the Territorial Force) were also affiliated with these reserve regiments. There was a major reorganisation in early 1917, reducing the number of regiments. Later that year, the 3rd Line units of those Yeomanry regiments whose 1st Line was now fighting dismounted as infantry in Egypt were withdrawn from the Cavalry Reserve regiments and instead aligned with the home-based infantry training organisation.

Soldiers

Men who enlisted into the cavalry, either as volunteers or conscripts, served with the cavalry reserve to carry out their basic training. Many were not, however, posted to a cavalry regiment overseas but were converted into infantry or other corps before being sent there. It is rare to see a cavalry reserve unit being mentioned in a man’s medal records, even if the man had trained with them.

A soldier of the 18th Hussars. Author’s collection. Men for this regiment were trained by the 11th Reserve Regiment of Cavalry at Tidworth until the 1917 reorganisation, when responsibility moved to the new 5th Reserve Regiment of Cavalry.

Reserve Regiments

1st Life GuardsReserve
Formed August 1914 at Hyde Park, London

2nd Life GuardsReserve
Formed August 1914 at Windsor

Royal Horse GuardsReserve
Formed August 1914 at Regents Park, London

Household Cavalry Reserve
Formed September 1916 at Windsor to supply drafts to the Household Battalion. Disbanded in early 1918

1st Reserve Regiment of Cavalry
Formed August 1914 at Aldershot. Trained men for the 1st and 5th Dragoon Guards, Glasgow Yeomanry and Sherwood Rangers.Was absorbed into new 4th Reserve Regiment early in 1917 (see below)

2nd Reserve Regiment of Cavalry
Formed August 1914 at Aldershot. Trained men for the 2nd Dragoon Guards, 6th Dragoons, Essex Yeomanry and the
Lothians and Border Horse. Was absorbed into new 4th Reserve Regiment early in 1917 (see below)

3rd Reserve Regiment of Cavalry
Formed August 1914 at Canterbury, Kent. Trained men for the 3rd and 6th Dragoon Guards, Northamptonshire Yeomanry
Surrey Yeomanry and Sussex Yeomanry. Was absorbed into new 6th Reserve Regiment early in 1917 (see below)

4th Reserve Regiment of Cavalry
Formed August 1914 at Tidworth. Trained men for the 4th and 7th Dragoon Guards, Warwickshire Yeomanry, Gloucestershire Yeomanry and Worcestershire Yeomanry. Was absorbed into new 6th Reserve Regiment early in 1917 (see below)

5th Reserve Regiment of Cavalry
Formed August 1914 at York. Trained men for the 1st and 2nd Dragoons, Northumberland Hussars, Yorkshire Dragoons, Yorkshire Hussars, East Riding Yeomanry. Was absorbed into new 6th Reserve Regiment early in 1917 (see below)

6th Reserve Regiment of Cavalry
Formed August 1914 at Dublin in Ireland. Trained men for the 5th and 12th Lancers, City of London Yeomanry and 1st County of London Yeomanry. Was absorbed into new 1st Reserve Regiment early in 1917 (see below)

7th Reserve Regiment of Cavalry
Formed August 1914 at Tidworth. Trained men for the 9th and 21st Lancers, Buckinghamshire Yeomanry and Berkshire Yeomanry.Was absorbed into new 1st Reserve Regiment early in 1917 (see below)

8th Reserve Regiment of Cavalry
Formed August 1914 at the Curragh in Ireland. Trained men for the 16th and 17th Lancers, Dorsetshire Yeomanry and Oxfordshire Yeomanry. Was absorbed into new 1st Reserve Regiment early in 1917 (see below)

9th Reserve Regiment of Cavalry
Formed August 1914 at the Shorncliffe in Kent. Trained men for the 3rd and 7th Hussars, 2nd County of London Yeomanry and 3rd County of London Yeomanry. Was absorbed into new 2nd Reserve Regiment early in 1917 (see below)

10th Reserve Regiment of Cavalry
Formed August 1914 at the Curragh in Ireland. Trained men for the 4th and 8th Hussars, the Duke of Lancaster’s Yeomanry,Lancashire Hussars and the Westmorland & Cumberland Yeomanry. Was absorbed into new 2nd Reserve Regiment early in 1917 (see below)

11th Reserve Regiment of Cavalry
Formed August 1914 at Tidworth. Trained men for the 10th and 18th Hussars, Hampshire Yeomanry, North Somerset Yeomanry and the Wiltshire Yeomanry. Was absorbed into new 5th Reserve Regiment early in 1917 (see below)

12th Reserve Regiment of Cavalry
Formed August 1914 at Aldershot. Trained men for the 11th and 13th Hussars, theLeicestershire Yeomanry, Lincolnshire Yeomanry and the Staffordshire Yeomanry. Was absorbed into new 3rd Reserve Regiment early in 1917 (see below)

13th Reserve Regiment of Cavalry
Formed August 1914 at Colchester. Trained men for the 14th and 20th Hussars, the Bedfordshire Yeomanry and the Hertfordshire Yeomanry. Was absorbed into new 5th Reserve Regiment early in 1917 (see below)

14th Reserve Regiment of Cavalry
Formed August 1914 at Longmoor near Liss in Hampshire. Trained men for the 15th and 19th Hussars, the Derbyshire Yeomanry and theSouth Notts Hussars. Was absorbed into new 3rd Reserve Regiment early in 1917 (see below)

Reorganised Reserve Regiments

1st Reserve Regiment of Cavalry
Formed early 1917 at the Curragh in Ireland. Trained men for the 5th, 9th, 12th, 16th, 17th and 21st Lancers, Bedfordshire Yeomanry, Lincolnshire Yeomanry, City of London Yeomanry, Surrey Yeomanry and East Riding Yeomanry

2nd Reserve Regiment of Cavalry
Formed early 1917 at the Curragh in Ireland. Trained men for the 3rd, 4th, 7th and 8th Hussars, Dorset Yeomanry, Lancashire Hussars, the 1st and 3rd County of London Yeomanry, South Notts Hussars, Oxfordshire Yeomanry
Westmorland & Cumberland Yeomanry

3rd Reserve Regiment of Cavalry
Formed early 1917 at Aldershot. Trained men for the 11th, 13th, 15th and 19th Hussars, the Buckinghamshire Yeomanry, Leicestershire Yeomanry, Staffordshire Yeomanry, Wiltshire Yeomanry (left) and Sherwood Rangers

4th Reserve Regiment of Cavalry
Formed early 1917 at Aldershot. Trained men for the 1st, 2nd and 5th Dragoon Guards, 6th Dragoons, Derbyshire Yeomanry, Essex Yeomanry, Glasgow Yeomanry, Hampshire Yeomanry (left), County of London Yeomanry and Lothians and Border Horse

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